Montefiore Sebag strana 2 z 3

Dramatický, poutavý příběh o krásné ženě, žijící v předrevolučním Rusku a poté ve Stalinově sovětském pekle.

Kniha je prehliadkou najväčších príbehov o odvahe a úspechu v dejinách ľudstva od staroveku až po 21. storočie. Historik Simon Sebag Montefiore, autor niekoľkých svetových bestsellerov, napríklad úspešného titulu Beštie – Najkrutejšie postavy dejín, ponúka pôsobivé portréty najvýznamnejších mužov a žien v histórii ľudstva. Nájdete v nej životné príbehy bojovníkov, štátnikov, vedcov, cestovateľov, skladateľov, spisovateľov, hercov či športovcov, ktoré vás poučia a pobavia.

Jerusalem is the universal city, the capital of two peoples, the shrine of three faiths; it is the prize of empires, the site of Judgement Day and the battlefield of today's clash of civilizations. From King David to Barack Obama, from the birth of Judaism, Christianity and Islam to the Israel-Palestine conflict, this is the epic history of 3,000 years of faith, slaughter, fanaticism and coexistence. How did this small, remote town become the Holy City, the 'centre of the world' and now the key to peace in the Middle East? In a gripping narrative, Simon Sebag Montefiore reveals this ever-changing city in its many incarnations, bringing every epoch and character blazingly to life. Jerusalem's biography is told through the wars, love affairs and revelations of the men and women - kings, empresses, prophets, poets, saints, conquerors and whores - who created, destroyed, chronicled and believed in Jerusalem. Drawing on new archives, current scholarship, his own family papers and a lifetime's study, Montefiore illuminates the essence of sanctity and mysticism, identity and empire in a unique chronicle of the city that many believe will be the setting for the Apocalypse. This is how Jerusalem became Jerusalem, and the only city that exists twice - in heaven and on earth.

Jerusalem is the universal city, the capital of two peoples, the shrine of three faiths; it is the prize of empires, the site of Judgement Day and the battlefield of today's clash of civilizations. From King David to Barack Obama, from the birth of Judaism, Christianity and Islam to the Israel-Palestine conflict, this is the epic history of 3,000 years of faith, slaughter, fanaticism and coexistence. How did this small, remote town become the Holy City, the 'centre of the world' and now the key to peace in the Middle East? In a gripping narrative, Simon Sebag Montefiore reveals this ever-changing city in its many incarnations, bringing every epoch and character blazingly to life. Jerusalem's biography is told through the wars, love affairs and revelations of the men and women - kings, empresses, prophets, poets, saints, conquerors and whores - who created, destroyed, chronicled and believed in Jerusalem. Drawing on new archives, current scholarship, his own family papers and a lifetime's study, Montefiore illuminates the essence of sanctity and mysticism, identity and empire in a unique chronicle of the city that many believe will be the setting for the Apocalypse. This is how Jerusalem became Jerusalem, and the only city that exists twice - in heaven and on earth.

Simon Sebag Montefiore, one of our pre-eminent historians, presents the lives of the giants who have made our world. The cast varies from conquerors, poets, kings, empresses and whores to psychopaths, composers and explorers. Informative, entertaining, inspiring and sometimes horrifying, this is a history of the world that contains the stories and characters that everyone should know and no one should forget.

Sztálin, Hitlerhez hasonlóan, mindörökre a gonosz megtestesítője marad, ugyanakkor egyike azoknak, akik a világot olyanra formálták, amilyennek ma ismerjük. E lenyűgöző életrajz feltárja azt az utat, melynek során egy grúz cipész fia a Vörös Cárrá lett. Szegénységben született, gyermekkorának sebhelyeit élete végéig viselte, kiváló tanuló volt, karizmatikus, ám veszélyes fiú, akit romantikus költőként méltatták és papnak tanítottak, ő azonban fanatikus forradalmárként találta meg a küldetést. Bankrablásokat ötölt ki, védelmi pénzeket szedett, gyújtogatások, fosztogatások és gyilkosságok kötődtek a nevéhez, de banditaként is félig értelmiségi maradt. Meglepő módon az is kiderült, hogy botrányosan csapongó szerető volt, nők és törvénytelen gyermekek sorát hagyta maga után. Ő volt a legfőbb összeesküvő és szabadulóművész, akinek páratlan leleményessége annyira lenyűgözte Lenint, hogy Trockijjal együtt egyik első számú csatlósává tette. Sztálin számára a paranoid, föld alatti forradalmárlét a természetes közeget jelentette. A gyilkos kaukázusi banditaharc és politikai gengszterség - párosulva a könyörtelen ideológiával - tette őt alkalmassá arra, hogy uralja a Kremlt, és hozzájáruljon a Szovjetunió megteremtéséhez. "Az ifjú Sztálin", mely szerteágazó kutatásokon és korábban hozzáférhetetlen levéltári anyagokon alapul, a "Sztálin: A Vörös Cár udvara" párdarabja és előtörténete. A forradalom krónikája, a Szovjetunió keletkezéstörténete, és egyúttal bensőséges életrajz, melyből egy fiatalkorában is erőteljes személyiség képe rajzolódik ki.

In 101 World Heroes, bestselling historian Simon Sebag Montefiore presents his personal selection of the 100 most heroic figures from the pages of world history. Emperors and queens, soldiers and statesmen, religious leaders and philosophers rub shoulders with composers and poets, scientists and explorers, artists and storytellers from three millennia. All are united not just by what they did in their own lifetimes, but also by the enduring legacy they have bequeathed to the sum of human experience and achievement. The book is illustrated throughout with maps, diagrams, paintings and photographs, and an appendix celebrates a further 100 individual deeds of heroism with a special claim to immortality. The heroes include: Ramses the Great Leonardo da Vinci Albert Einstein King Solomon Elizabeth I of England Winston Churchill The Buddha Tokugawa Ieyasu M. K. Gandhi Aristotle William Shakespeare F.D. Roosevelt Alexander the Great Thomas Jefferson David Ben Gurion Hannibal Voltaire George Orwell Jesus Napoleon Bonaparte Elvis Presley Marcus Aurelius Horatio Nelson J. F. Kennedy Mohammed Duke of Wellington John Paul II Charlemagne Abraham Lincoln Nelson Mandela Leo Tolstoy Charles Darwin.

Jeruzalém je považován za jedno z nejdůležitějších měst v celých dějinách lidstva. V průběhu tří tisíciletí byl několikrát zničen a vždy znovu postaven, platil za cennou trofej dobyvačných válek, mnohdy určoval směr vývoje společnosti a dnes opět hraje zásadní roli v takzvaném střetu civilizací. Je hlavním městem dvou národů a svatyní tří náboženství. Od krále Davida po premiéra Benjamina Netanjahua, od zrození judaismu, křesťanství a islámu po izraelsko-palestinský konflikt, zdi Jeruzaléma vyprávějí historii víry, krvavých bojů, fanatismu, ale také soužití a tolerance. Autor je známý britský historik, řada jeho studií obdržela literární ocenění.

If your children were forced to testify against you, what terrible secrets would they reveal? Moscow 1945. As Stalin and his courtiers celebrate victory over Hitler, shots ring out. On a nearby bridge, a teenage boy and girl lie dead. But this is no ordinary tragedy and these are no ordinary teenagers, but the children of Russia's most important leaders who attend the most exclusive school in Moscow. Is it murder? A suicide pact? Or a conspiracy against the state? Directed by Stalin himself, an investigation begins as children are arrested and forced to testify against their friends - and their parents. This terrifying witch-hunt soon unveils illicit love affairs and family secrets in a hidden world where the smallest mistakes will be punished with death.

There have been many biographies of Stalin, but the court that surrounded him is untravelled ground. Simon Sebag Montefiore, acclaimed biographer of Catherine the Great and her lover, prime minister and general Potemkin, has unearthed the vast underpinning that sustained Stalin. Not only ministers such as Molotov or secret service chiefs such as Beria, but men and women whose loyalty he trusted only until the next purge.

Výpravná kniha známeho a rešpektovaného autora Simona Sebaga Montefioreho si kladie neskromný cieľ podať dejiny mesta, v ktorom sa rodili a výrazným spôsobom ovplyvňovali tri svetové náboženstvá. Nijaké mesto na svete, či už Atény, Rím alebo Babylon dodnes nevyvoláva väčšie vášne a polemiky než Jeruzalem. Simon Sebag Montefiore si plne uvedomuje, že podať syntetický a neprotirečivý výklad mesta, ktoré má viac mien ako ktorékoľvek iné mesto na svete, a o ktorého ovládnutie sa usilovali mnohé národy sveta (často v mene svojho Boha), je nad jeho sily ako aj sily kohokoľvek iného. Aj preto volí zaujímavý a originálny prístup, keď časť výkladu dejín mesta podáva cez optiku jeho obyvateľov, pričom hlboko rešpektuje ich rôzne pohľady na dobové udalosti, náboženské presvedčenie a vyhýba sa čierno-bielo formulovaným záverom. Výsledkom je pútavá, čitateľná a mimoriadne pestrofarebná mozaika príbehov, ktoré tvoria ucelenú dejinnú topografiu Jeruzalema od jeho najstarších čias po súčasnosť.

The Romanovs were the most successful dynasty of modern times, ruling a sixth of the world's surface. How did one family turn a war-ruined principality into the world's greatest empire? And how did they lose it all? This is the intimate story of twenty tsars and tsarinas, some touched by genius, some by madness, but all inspired by holy autocracy and imperial ambition. Montefiore's gripping chronicle reveals their secret world of unlimited power and ruthless empire-building, overshadowed by palace conspiracy, family rivalries, sexual decadence and wild extravagance, and peopled by a cast of adventurers, courtesans, revolutionaries and poets, from Ivan the Terrible to Tolstoy, from Queen Victoria to Lenin. To rule Russia was both imperial-sacred mission and poisoned chalice: six tsars were murdered and all the Romanovs lived under constant threat to their lives. Peter the Great tortured his own son to death while making Russia an empire, and dominated his court with a dining club notable for compulsory drunkenness, naked dwarfs and fancy dress. Catherine the Great overthrew her own husband - who was murdered soon afterwards - loved her young male favourites, conquered Ukraine and fascinated Europe. Paul was strangled by courtiers backed by his own son, Alexander I, who faced Napoleon's invasion and the burning of Moscow, then went on to take Paris. Alexander II liberated the serfs, survived five assassination attempts, and wrote perhaps the most explicit love letters ever written by a ruler. THE ROMANOVS climaxes with a fresh, unforgettable portrayal of Nicholas and Alexandra, the rise and murder of Rasputin, war and revolution - and the harrowing massacre of the entire family. Written with dazzling literary flair, drawing on new archival research, THE ROMANOVS is at once an enthralling story of triumph and tragedy, love and death, a universal study of power, and an essential portrait of the empire that still defines Russia today.

'One of the great love stories of history, in a league with Napoleon and Josephine, and Antony and Cleopatra ...Excellent, with dazzling mastery of detail and literary flair' Economist It was history's most successful political partnership - as sensual and fiery as it was creative and visionary. Catherine the Great was a woman of notorious passion and imperial ambition. Prince Potemkin - wildly flamboyant and sublimely talented - was the love of her life and her co-ruler. Together they seized Ukraine and Crimea, defining the Russian empire to this day. Their affair was so tumultuous that they negotiated an arrangement to share power, leaving Potemkin free to love his beautiful nieces, and Catherine her young male favourites. But these 'twin souls' never stopped loving each other. Drawing on their intimate letters and vast research, Simon Sebag Montefiore's enthralling, widely acclaimed biography restores these imperial partners to their rightful place as titans of their age.

The Romanovs were the most successful dynasty of modern times, ruling a sixth of the world's surface. How did one family turn a war-ruined principality into the world's greatest empire? And how did they lose it all? This is the intimate story of twenty tsars and tsarinas, some touched by genius, some by madness, but all inspired by holy autocracy and imperial ambition. Montefiore's gripping chronicle reveals their secret world of unlimited power and ruthless empire-building, overshadowed by palace conspiracy, family rivalries, sexual decadence and wild extravagance, and peopled by a cast of adventurers, courtesans, revolutionaries and poets. Written with dazzling literary flair, drawing on new archival research, THE ROMANOVS is at once an enthralling chronicle of triumph and tragedy, love and death, a universal study of power, and an essential portrait of the empire that still defines Russia today.

'The black earth was already baking and the sun was just rising when they mounted their horses and rode across the grasslands towards the horizon on fire ...' Imprisoned in the Gulags for a crime he did not commit, Benya Golden joins a penal battalion made up of Cossacks and convicts to fight the Nazis. He enrols in the Russian cavalry, and on a hot summer day in July 1942, he and his band of brothers are sent on a desperate mission behind enemy lines. Switching between Benya's war in the grasslands of Southern Russia, and Stalin's plans in the Kremlin, between Benya's intense affair with an Italian nurse and a romance between Stalin's daughter and a journalist also on the Eastern Front, this is a sweeping story of passion, bravery and human survival where personal betrayal is a constant companion, and death just a heartbeat away. Praise for Red Sky at Noon 'The gripping final instalment of the Moscow Trilogy tells of a man wrongly imprisoned in the Gulags and his fight for redemption. Love in dark times, meticulously researched... In this searing tale of love and war, most moving is the redemptive relationship between a soldier and a nurse that blooms amid the brutality. An homage to the author's favourite Russian writers and the Western masterpieces of Larry McMurtry, Cormac McCarthy and Elmore Leonard, such influences pervade this atmospheric tale told in the author's distinct own voice.' - Observer 'Mythic and murderous violence in Russia...there are power-drunk Nazis and Soviet traitors, including a particularly memorable villain ...Written with brio & deep knowledge of its fascinating subject matter... a deeply satisfying pageturner.' - Book of the Month, The Times 'In this third volume of The Moscow Trilogy, the fate of combatants and civilians is often harsh. With his feel for vivid and immediate drama and impressive research, the author evokes the extreme turbulence and violence impacting on individuals. Writing with passion, Montefiore makes the point that, up against the huge forces of war, the struggle for personal resolution can be tragic - but never wasted.' - Daily Mail 'The final instalment of Montefiore's loosely connected Moscow Trilogy: amidst the killing and the chaos, a group of prisoners are offered a chance of redemption on a secret mission behind enemy lines on horseback. Montefiore has a keen sense of place and an eye of unexpected details. Switching between the frontline on the Russian steppes and Stalin in the Kremlin, this is an EXCITING FAST-PACED ADVENTURE AND A LAMENT FOR LOVE IN DARK AND BRUTAL TIMES.' - Mail on Sunday 'I devoured Red Sky at Noon. A heartstopping, heartbreaking, technicolour epic. A grand homage to the Russian masters Babel & Grossman, echoes of Hemingway & Dostoevsky, and a propulsive delight that is entirely Montefiore's own. Gripping storytelling allied with intimate, unsqueamish knowledge of Russian history - a special combination.' - AD Miller, author of Snowdrops

Simon Sebag Montefiore brilantne podáva pôsobivý a hodnoverný príbeh najúspešnejšej panovníckej dynastie od čias cézarov. Dvadsať absolutistických cárov a cárovien vládlo viac ako tri storočia od dramatického vzostupu po revolučný pád prostredníctvom krvavých vojen, mieru plného násilia, v závratnom bohatstve aj v absolútnej chudobe, s vášnivou láskou aj nemilosrdnou ctižiadostivosťou, v šialenstve aj v dekadencii. Príbeh Romanovovcov bol zobrazený v mnohých publikáciách, no nikdy nie v takej pôsobivej kombinácii literárneho nadania, rozprávačského umenia, dôkladného výskumu a psychologického pohľadu. Romanovovci obsahujú všetko od vojny a diplomacie po zriaďovanie inštitúcií a snovanie dvorných intríg, no príbeh oživujú predovšetkým portréty dvadsiatich ruských panovníkov a opis života na cárskom dvore. Za tri storočia Romanovovci priviedli na svet titanov aj tyranov, viedli dobyvačné vojny a uzatvárali mier, no často sa správali tak nemravne, až musíme súhlasiť s vyjadrením Antonyho Beevora z Financial Times, že Hry o tróny v porovnaní s Romanovovcami budú čitateľom pripadať ako príslovečný čajový večierok u vikára. Montefiore zaznamenáva životy cárov a cárovien do delikátnych podrobností v dokonalej, občas až iskrivej próze. Jeho dielo je cenné najmä v tom, že spojil dôkladnú znalosť ruských dejín s rozprávačským majstrovstvom.